Christian Covington doesn't want to let Texans' No. 1 defense down

Covington getschance to start,eager to makethe most of it

Defensive end Christian Covington, running a drill during practice Tuesday, has found a level of comfort as he approaches his third NFL season.

Photo: Brett Coomer, Staff

The path to the quarterback is much more direct now for Christian Covington, a straight shot a few yards to his left without nearly as much interference to deal with as before.

This vantage point gives Covington an inviting view of opponents' backfield.

Two years removed from becoming a full-time defensive end after a previous stint as an undersized rookie defensive tackle, Covington is atop the Texans' depth chart at right end.

The former Rice standout is enjoying his new job responsibilities heading into his third NFL season. In the past, Covington was responsible for controlling two gaps and clogging up the middle of the Texans' defense as he occupied blockers. Now, he's in more of a play-making role.

"Just freedom, I'm able to do a lot more as a defensive end," Covington said. "Especially in our defense. My role during my rookie year, I did a lot of two-gapping. That's something I never did before my entire football career. To be back out there working edges, I've been really blessed."

Compact and strong at 6-2 and down to roughly 300 pounds after playing some nose tackle at roughly 325, Covington's game is built around his combination of power and quickness.

Covington is athletic, with a time of 4.89 seconds in the 40, a 301/2-inch vertical leap, a 9-3 broad jump and bench-pressing 225 pounds 24 times. He's stronger and leaner than in recent years, training religiously with Texans strength and conditioning coach Craig Fitzgerald along with local trainer Danny Arnold at Plex.

Covington also does Pilates and maintains a strict high-protein, low-fat diet.

"Pilates is a key thing for me in regards to my mobility and hip flexibility," Covington said. "I'm trying to cut out all sugars that I can. … I'm just trying to eat the right things."

Good DNA

How Covington fuels his body runs akin to how the former sixth-round draft pick fuels his mind.

A native of Vancouver, British Columbia, Covington relies heavily on pass-rushing knowledge gleaned from his father, Grover Covington, a Canadian Football League Hall of Fame selection and all-time sack leader (157) for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

"He's been my coach since day one," Covington said. "He taught me everything. I give him all the credit."

Grover frequently makes suggestions, but he doesn't interfere with the coaching his son gets from Texans defensive line coach Anthony Weaver.

"Christian can use power," Grover said. "He can use speed. He's real balanced. You want to change it up and have another move in place if one doesn't work. I always tell him, 'Try a rip sometimes, try a swim,' but I don't try to coach him up too much. I let the pros take care of that."

Although Christian has dealt with an undisclosed injury during training camp that sidelined him last week against the New England Patriots, he returned to the practice field Tuesday with a smile on his face. He's the type of player who enjoys practice.

"He's doing well," Texans coach Bill O'Brien said. "He's a tough guy. He's playing with a little bit of a painful deal right now. Plays through it, smart. He's become kind of a leader, especially to the younger players. Great guy."

The injury didn't faze Covington.

"Yeah, it comes with the territory," Covington said. "Every player is going to go through nicks and bangs and bruises. It's good to finally be out of the training room. Every time I get banged up, I try to be resilient and get back out here with my teammates. It's been a good camp so far, minus that."

Covington emerged as an important player last season when he played in every game, including five starts. The former All-Conference USA selection recorded a career-high 26 tackles along with one sack, two quarterback hits and two tackles for losses. Covington finished his rookie season with two sacks, four tackles for losses, four quarterback hits and eight tackles.

Improving against run

Now that Jadeveon Clowney has been shifted to outside linebacker, Covington has been named a starter.

"It felt good," Covington said. "At the same time, coach (O'Brien) reiterates that we can't look at stuff like that. We've got to keep grinding. I'm trying to achieve that, attain that and keep that going."

As promising as Covington was last season in spot action, he's being counted on more this year.

He is consumed with becoming a productive three-down lineman who can be utilized as a run-stopper and as a pass rusher.

"Technically, I'm trying to get better," Covington said. "I've improved with regards to going against the run. That's been a difficulty of mine that I've been trying to get used to these past couple of years. I'm able now to be a lot more stout in there to be able to be on the field for all three downs. That's something I want to be relied upon to do."

Covington considers it an honor to line up alongside stars like three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year J.J. Watt. Being a part of the NFL's top-ranked defense is something he takes pride in.

"I keep trying to elevate myself to match what this defense is capable of," Covington said. "I know we did some great things last season. I want to make sure I help out any way that I can so we can finish at the top like last year. We have key guys back. This defense is really exciting to produce and put on the field. The sky is the limit."

Aaron Wilson is a Texans beat writer for the Houston Chronicle, joining the paper in August 2015. He was a Baltimore Ravens beat writer from 2001 to 2015, working for The Baltimore Sun, including coverage of Super Bowl XLVII, the Ray Rice domestic violence case and the careers of Ray Lewis, Ed Reed and Jonathan Ogden, and previously covered the team for the Carroll County Times and the Annapolis Capital.

This marks the second time the Washington, D.C. native has covered the AFC South, previously covering the Tennessee Titans and the Jacksonville Jaguars.

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